bekeeblog

i have a lot of packages arriving today; we'll just call it "stimulating the economy".

the yarn for my super awesome sweater is to arrive today, along with my new crock pot and green laser pointer for the dogs. amazon split my order into two packages, so ups and fedex will both be arriving today. i picture them dueling to get up to the door.

unfortunately, joann is where i had to order the needles for the super awesome sweater and it doesn't appear they've even left the warehouse.

in other news, i'm taking a friend to the apple store this afternoon to get an ipod touch and we're going to eat at the food court! that, combined with my recent rocky's trip, and a visit to mcdonald's next week for a shamrock shake, apparently, it's "reminisce about old foods" month.

i'll leave you with this awesome picture of nora:

Posted by bekee at 9:44 AM | permalink | licks (0) | tracks (0)

betz white recently blogged about an awesome scarf she came up with; showing the inspirational book from where she got the stitch pattern idea... which i promptly purchased because of the completely inside out and upside down! sweater.

unfortunately, the required yarn will cost me over $125 with shipping.

of course, there's always the possibility of substitution but there's no way it'll look as cool; there's a reason designers use the yarn they use, because it's usually pretty awesome yarn.

we get our bonus in two weeks, i think i can wait til then to order.

Posted by bekee at 8:21 AM | permalink | licks (0) | tracks (0)

i'm treating myself to two new knitting books. one of them has a pattern for a sweater that can be worn right-side-up and upside-down! this amazes me.

i'm a little worried about how much the yarn will cost to make the sweater, cuz it looks like the sweater will cost about $300 for the yarn alone; i think i'll have to rekindle my relationship with elann to get an inexpensive alternative...

the other one is cuz i think it'll look cool to play with vertical color striping and thick-knits.

Posted by bekee at 8:29 AM | permalink | licks (0) | tracks (0)

we talk about some pretty weird things at lunch, but today i joked about a idea that i think might be really cool... a knitted braille poem for hanging display. i'd probably use hug o' war since i have an affinity for it.

Posted by bekee at 12:24 PM | permalink | licks (0) | tracks (0)

my favorite yarn is on sale for 15% off this week only. unfortunately, i've lived beyond my means lately and have no extra money to afford it. and i can't really justify it since i haven't done any substantial knitting in over a year.

but it's such pretty yarn.

Posted by bekee at 8:27 AM | permalink | licks (0) | tracks (0)

i have been knitting, honest.

if anyone, ANYONE, recognizes that last colorway as a yarn they enjoy, please please tell me what it is... cuz i threw away the label and i can't for the life of me remember what brand/type it is and it's driving me nutso.

Posted by bekee at 11:46 AM | permalink | licks (0) | tracks (0)

i just forgot to take a picture of it before handing it over. once the weather permits, i'll grab a snapshot of the scarf in action.

Posted by bekee at 9:03 AM | permalink | licks (0) | tracks (0)

that emoticon means "i don't know! lol!"

i found an adorable pattern for teeny tiny mittens.

Posted by bekee at 3:32 PM | permalink | licks (0) | tracks (0)

i've mentioned my year hiatus from knitting, and also the resurgence of my desire to craft. this vocalization has resulted in a handful of requests for bittens. by christmas.

i have to politely suggest that they give these as new year's gifts.

Posted by bekee at 8:31 AM | permalink | licks (0) | tracks (0)

it's been over 8 months since i've knitted. i'm not even sure if the big rubbermaid filled with yarn is in the basement or upstairs. i think my needles are downstairs, too, in a sewing box.

wtf?

i have a lapghan that's about 5 inches long sitting on the needles. i hope it's not getting deformed, or worse, falling off the cable that it's on.

when it gets colder, i hope i'll be content sitting in front of the tv using up some of my stash.

Posted by bekee at 2:54 PM | permalink | licks (0) | tracks (0)

i haven't really been knitting since a week or so before christmas. the blanket you see up there has been a WIP for two months... and it's frustrating because of all the weaving in i'll have to do when it's done. so i just do like 2 rows and then put it down for another week or so. :/

obligatory pic of the beings with which i live:

Posted by bekee at 10:59 AM | permalink | licks (0) | tracks (0)

i haven't knitted in a long time. like 2 weeks. i think i'm going over to my friend judy's house for crafty saturday today, so at least i can get some rows done on the colorful waves throw. gosh darn that's an annoying project.. if i had known i'd have to weave ends in every 3 rows, i probably never would have bought the darn kit.

Posted by bekee at 1:20 PM | permalink | licks (0) | tracks (0)

here's olly. the elephant.

Posted by bekee at 1:37 PM | permalink | licks (2) | tracks (0)

i'm working on the colorful waves throw. it's going verrrry slowly because it's a pattern repeat of 8 different yarns and i can't carry them up the sides because it would be too thick and unsightly. if anyone else who's working on this (or other very yarn-switchy patterns) has any advice, i'd love to hear it.

we're headed to mom's tomorrow for turkey day. we're making spinach lasagne, baked brie, and escargots!

Posted by bekee at 8:19 AM | permalink | licks (0) | tracks (0)

dammit. i had a whole blogpost written up about my 'to knit' list and what bittens are, and then i went to use the dictionary and lost the tab that i was writing in.

so, i'll cut it short by responding to mum's comment from the previous entry: i don't mind the theory of halloween, and would willing to participate on a lower scale; but without being strongarmed into it.

Posted by bekee at 7:58 AM | permalink | licks (0) | tracks (0)

i just bought the new england kit for the afghan on the front of knit picks (click through the advert to see the kits). i already have a blanket for the couch, but this one looks like it might be good for wintertime, insofar as the color scheme goes.

Posted by bekee at 8:11 AM | permalink | licks (0) | tracks (0)

i finally finished the wavy scarf. i added a crocheted flower to either end to use up the rest of the yarn. now i need to find someone who likes limeade to give it to.

Posted by bekee at 12:29 PM | permalink | licks (1) | tracks (0)

i am knitting. really!

Posted by bekee at 4:39 PM | permalink | licks (0) | tracks (0)

i've been trying to use up yarn. cuz i keep buying more. but the yarn i'm buying more of is nice yarn, like noro kureyon and nashua. that stuff is better for my fingers and soul than acrylic.

so i ordered some kureyon today cuz it's bootifully self-striping and i want to make a stripey-ribbed scarf for wintertime.

speaking of wintertime, i need to reevaluate my morning routine for when there's snow on the ground; what with walking jones, showering, scraping car, eating breakfast, making coffee, etc.

also, too, i need a new winter coat. my black leather was never very warm, and it's getting even less so as it wears out.

Posted by bekee at 12:56 PM | permalink | licks (0) | tracks (0)

i only need to create two more squares and thus begins the tedious task of knitting them all together.

Posted by bekee at 10:19 AM | permalink | licks (2) | tracks (0)

each square is ~1ft and i have enough yarn to make this twice as big. my gauge is almost half the pattern's.. maybe i knit too tight?

Posted by bekee at 9:35 AM | permalink | licks (1) | tracks (0)

i'm still a knitter. i'm still working on the "throw", which, due to an incorrect yarn amount suggestion, is taking a while because i bought too much yarn. i'm also sitting on a sock that i started while waiting for that yarn to show up, with leftover yarn from the fair isle socks... so honest! i'm knitting.

Posted by bekee at 8:09 AM | permalink | licks (0) | tracks (0)

here's my progress on the retro throw from the last knitpicks catalog:

i have a measly 4 more squares to knit. though the amount of yarn that i have left looks like i can make 8 more squares, so maybe i will.

here's jones sittin' on the back porch:

Posted by bekee at 7:34 AM | permalink | licks (0) | tracks (0)

here's co-worker's kid sporting a pumpkin hat.. his orange nose is from his affinity toward carrots.

Posted by bekee at 9:27 AM | permalink | licks (2) | tracks (0)

i got my denise kit over two years ago and haven't look to my straight needles but once (i used the honkin' 19s for a scarf) since. i love the ability to change needle sizes quickly, to use them for working in the round (if you can't do rounds on two long circs, you don't know what you're missing.. i recommend cat bordhi's socks soar on two circular needles). well, i was working on the strawberry fruit cap, sliding the yarn around the smallest, workable circ (it's 17" , the pattern called for 16", so it was tight) and the #5 tip snapped right at the point in which the cable keeps its place. thankfully the kit is under a lifetime warranty and all i had to do was email them and ask if i should send the broken tip back (as recommended in their faq) or if an email request would suffice? someone got back to me right away to apologize, and offered to send a new tip immediately. how great!

i also ordered yarn for a retro throw from knitpicks. fortunately for them, i think the only reason i was drawn to this item are it's colors.

Posted by bekee at 9:35 AM | permalink | licks (0) | tracks (0)

i knit too tight. the sock doesn't fit over my heel, and i don't think any amount of blocking will help.

it sure looks pretty, though.

Posted by bekee at 1:42 PM | permalink | licks (0) | tracks (0)

i'm making a pumpkin hat for a coworker's kid. should turn out pretty darn cute.

with these requests, i haven't worked on the tulip & gingham socks in about 2 weeks... but i'll get back to them soon. the heel-turn was weird, but i figured it out.

Posted by bekee at 3:18 PM | permalink | licks (0) | tracks (0)

they're coming along nicely... the heel turn threw me for a loop, as it's not done in quite the same fashion that i'm used to.. these will certainly look a lot better after being blocked.

today, crafty saturday is at my house.. i'm working on two little double-seed-stitch bags for a woman at work. i made her a cellphone cozy back when i was learning how to knit, and she's worn it out over the last three years, so it's time for an update; plus i'm a much better knitter now. :)

Posted by bekee at 3:01 PM | permalink | licks (0) | tracks (0)

so i started on the tulip and gingham socks yesterday. i'll be damned if i can read a chart. i think what threw me, is the alien illusion scarf chart in the first stitch n bitch book is charted, but you read it from the bottom left.. so i immediately started reading the fair isle chart from the left. i wish it were more obivous how to start things.

with the fair isle hat, starting the chart didn't matter much since it was in the round, and the rows made sense so i didn't really need to see the chart; such is not the case with these fancy socks. i wonder if i'll actually wear them? :)

Posted by bekee at 8:47 AM | permalink | licks (0) | tracks (0)

i forgot to show you the finished fair isle hat from knit whits. it's been done for a while now. i must have had tight tension, cuz it hardly fits my head..

here's a close up:

also, too, i'm working on a pair of bittens out of the coveted vesper sock yarn, which goes out of stock almost immediately after becoming available. it's hand-kool-aid-dyed 100% merino wool. it's soooo soft and prettyomg.

Posted by bekee at 11:44 AM | permalink | licks (0) | tracks (0)

i think everything is pretty copacetic.. the recent comments aren't in order, but no one will notice except me.

on to better things, here are my two projects before being felted:

the bag is about 11" from top to bottom. i used 10s instead of 10.5s to get a tighter knit. the fuzzyfeet on the left were done on 10.5s, as the pattern suggests. i forgot, until i was all done, that lighter colors felt less than darker ones, because of the processing before dying (i doubt it's called bleaching, but it has to be un-colored before it's dyed, resulting in a fiber that's less willing to be "ruined" any more). i'll be spending a lot of time in the tub tomorrow with my plunger getting these guys to cooperate. after pics when they're dry.

Posted by bekee at 3:13 PM | permalink | licks (0) | tracks (0)

i finished MY fuzzyfeet yesterday (while sitting on the couch watching bad tv), so they'll get felted soon, along with the booga j bag that i finished last week. i promise to take before and after pics.

also, this might be amusing to you, or not.. i misplaced my scissors about a week ago.. couldn't find them anywhere. kept joking that kurt stole them, etc. well, if your knitting area is anything like mine, you'll have hats and gloves laying around on your coffee table along with current project instructions and other knitting magazines. i found them yesterday because i happened to be untying my shoes at the exact right location. the scissors were practically plain-as-day on the coffee table sticking out from under a hat.

Posted by bekee at 9:21 AM | permalink | licks (0)

i bought more yarn yesterday. kaleidascope yarns is having a sale on lamb's pride worsted, which i make all my bittens out of.. so i got 6 skeins. i need to make me some felted slippers, and lucky for me they were plentiful with the color orange-you-glad.

Posted by bekee at 11:22 AM | permalink | licks (0)

wow. it took ~3 hours to weave in the ends. i carried three colors that it made sense to, but there were four other colors that were only used for six rows every 18 rows, so it didn't work out to carry those. anyhow, i guess i know how to fair isle now... i don't wear hats, really, so i'm not sure who's going to be the lucky recipient of the hat, but i'll take pics soon. i also started on some bittens with the classic elite marl la and didn't realize that it was 4 2-ply strands spun together. that's too thick for bittens, so i had to unply them into two and two. that was fun.

Posted by bekee at 2:40 PM | permalink | licks (0)

well, it's going. the continental knitting style is hard to get used to, but it does seem like it would be faster than english. i'm halfway through the charted pattern, so you can see the blue/red combo. 10 rows took the duration of the hitchhiker's guide so that gives you an idea of how long it takes to fair isle.

Posted by bekee at 3:13 PM | permalink | licks (3)

TChem was right. two-handed makes way more sense with two colors. it was a little awkward since i tried it on a row that i was to purl, wrapping the yarn around the bottom, but it still went faster. dare i say twice as fast? anyhow, this should certainly speed the progress. pics when i get to the charted pattern.

Posted by bekee at 9:08 AM | permalink | licks (0)

fair isle is s-l-o-w! i can't hold the yarn over my pointer finger *and* my thumb! so i pick up the yarn every other stitch. two-color cast-on, 1 k row, and 1 p row on 128 sts took me a little over an hour. [phew] but it looks kinda cool.

Posted by bekee at 8:49 AM | permalink | licks (1)

when boredom happens, i buy yarn. i just got three skeins of kureyon off ebay for $25 with shipping, and three hanks of classic elite marL la from elann for 1/2 the retail price. omg.

Posted by bekee at 1:04 PM | permalink | licks (0)

on friday, i placed an order for this fair isle hat. it'll be my first attempt at fair isle.. i didn't want to dive right into a sweater, since yarn cost can be a little intimidating. if i like this particular style of knitting, i think i can make up plenty of small projects to use up my little bits of yarn. i hope it comes soon.

Posted by bekee at 10:54 AM | permalink | licks (0)

i have been knitting.. i want to do something more challenging though, like a lace scarf, or *gasp* intarsia, but i don't know if i have the patience!

Posted by bekee at 11:14 AM | permalink | licks (0)

i dumped my stash onto the carpet early this week, in order to refresh my mind as to what's in the huge rubbermaid bin; and to see if any combos jumped out at me... unfortunately, i have little of anything that matches and if it does match, there aren't enough yards to do anything with. and why did i buy so much sugar 'n cream when i started knitting? i h8 cotton. i also have this weird green ribbon yarn that i got from st. vinny's. i think i just bought it because it was yarn and it was cheap. then there's a couple balls of ggh esprit that i suppose i could use as cuffs for my bittens. a ball of some yucky-to-knit-with suede yarn, also from elann. maybe this experience will disuade me from buying yarn online unless i've seen it irl first. like my favorite, old standby, brown sheep lamb's pride worsted. i <3 that stuff. off to experiment!

Posted by bekee at 9:55 AM | permalink | licks (0)

i've had this skein of colinette point 5 for over a year. i got it on ebay because i loved the colors, and it was cheaper than retail. i tried making a scarf out of it on 5 different sized needles yesterday, and none of them were cooperating. i've never had this hard of a time with any bit of yarn until now. i finally had about 2' done on US15 needles and decided to frog it. i said, outloud to no one, "maybe this yarn doesn't want to be a scarf. maybe it wants to be a hat.

Posted by bekee at 9:17 AM | permalink | licks (0)

i just stumbled upon this handy website with videos of knitting techniques!

Posted by bekee at 11:10 AM | permalink | licks (0)

i can't f*ing believe it's december 21st already. happy solstice!

Posted by bekee at 8:38 AM | permalink | licks (1)

to bust out a bunch of the new knitty's pocket creatures for gifts around the office. we'll see how long one takes before i promise too much; plus i have to find dried lavender. and cotton? maybe i'll just buy some cheap socks.

Posted by bekee at 12:11 PM | permalink | licks (1)

i want to make one of those oversized aran fishermen sweaters but can't seem to find a decent pattern online. if any of you knitting webloggers happen upon this entry and have a good resource for this sort of sweater, i'd love a nudge in the right
direction. i even found the perfect yarn at elann.

due to comment spam, this entry has been closed to comments.

Posted by bekee at 9:59 AM | permalink | licks (1)

it's an all-knitted wedding. Cast Off Knitting Club For Boys And Girls

Posted by bekee at 8:57 AM | permalink | licks (0)

strange knits Patricia Waller:Bilder

Posted by bekee at 10:57 AM | permalink | licks (0)

now here's something i need to try. it looks pretty cool.
Spun Magazine: Knit Bead Bracelet

Posted by bekee at 10:19 AM | permalink | licks (0)

i saw this on the make blog.. it's an automatic stitch counter! we make money not art: Smart needles for distracted knitters

Posted by bekee at 9:37 AM | permalink | licks (1)

i've been working on more bittens to sell at a friends' shop when it gets colder out.

here are my cuties sleeping.

Posted by bekee at 1:34 PM | permalink | licks (0)

i got a bug today to use up some of the beads i've had for over 10 years. i used to make hemp necklaces and have a large collection of glass beads leftover from those times. the following are the results of my efforts over the last 2.5 hours: update: i forgot to mention that these are stitch markers for knitting.

Posted by bekee at 6:52 PM | permalink | licks (1)

(almost) every saturday, i have some people over to enjoy being crafty. last week sam was over for a little bit. i tried to get him to knit, but he wasn't having any of it:

here's ann working on a wolf counter-cross stitch:

judy, working on a tiger latch-hook rug that was started years ago:

and finally, i tried spinning with the drop spindle that i ordered. i am amazed that i understand what's going on; and that will help me use the wheel. i just need to get the hang of drafting. here is my resulting yarn from today. it's nothing pretty, it's got baubles all up and down it, and it's terribly uneven in weight. but it's mine. :)

Posted by bekee at 2:33 PM | permalink | licks (1)

my drop spindle and book came today and i can't wait* to get home and try it.
*my new thing to say after saying that i can't wait for something is, "i am going to fall asleep until it happens so i don't have to wait." i think it's reaching the not-so-funny part of the letterman theory of humor**.
**coined by colin. it's the act of repeating a word, phrase, joke, or action well past the point that it is no longer funny, until it turns itself around and becomes funny once again.

Posted by bekee at 4:17 PM | permalink | licks (0)

i haven't touched the spinning wheel in like 4 months. but i just got some roving from an ebay seller and i ordered spin it: making yarn from scratch and a drop spindle. perhaps if i can "get" the concept, i won't be so frustrated with the wheel? who knows. i also ordered a kumihimo disc just cuz it looks cool.

Posted by bekee at 3:22 PM | permalink | licks (0)

so i've been knitting the chevron scarf from last-minute knitted gifts. i'm kinda mad that we didn't make it to the author's shop in soho while we were in nyc.. here's my colorway. i like the colors in the book better, but, as i said, i had a grab bag of kpppm to use up:

Posted by bekee at 9:39 AM | permalink | licks (0)

i don't think this is /really/ lace knitting, but it's my first time with this sort of pattern. you can't really see the laceyness in this pic, but the kpppm looks very pretty. i bought a grab bag of five skeins over a year ago, and hadn't found a pattern that it wanted to be until this one..

Posted by bekee at 11:30 AM | permalink | licks (0)

well, my throat is still quite sore. but i have been knitting. honest. but mt 3.16 is being finicky and it won't let me upload pics to show you. so you'll just have to believe me. let me try again.. here's the felted mobieus fanny (can never seem to get things to felt as tight as i want):

and a cutie little bonnet for baby bazsali:

Posted by bekee at 5:56 PM | permalink | licks (1)

i have been knitting, honest. i got cat bordhi's second treasury of magical knitting, and made this fanny basket (it's in a pre-felted state):

and i'll use this mobieus loop to make a ferret basket bed thing:

i'm also working on one of her tri-fold mobieus rim baskets. i'll pic it before it gets felted.

Posted by bekee at 9:13 AM | permalink | licks (0)

knitting. here are some armwarmers and a hat that i need to deliver.


kurt and i just watched the grudge. kurt was spooked by it but i didn't think it was too bad.

Posted by bekee at 2:17 PM | permalink | licks (0)

i haven't gotten very far with this whole spinning thing.

Posted by bekee at 11:11 AM | permalink | licks (0)

thanks to renee for her most recent comments re: the assembly of my wheel.. now i have another question: the auction lady gave me a bag of roving with the wheel to "get me started". do i really have to tear bits off of it in order to spin? it seems like carded wool wouldn't need to be turned into roving if all you have to do is tear it apart again to spin.

Posted by bekee at 8:29 AM | permalink | licks (1)

for time, energy, and water savings. if you're going to felt something, don't do it in your washer.
grab a bucket, as much water to cover the item(s), dawn dish soap, and a small plunger; plunge away for 10 minutes. for real. don't go wasting all that water just to get a new bag or pair of slippers.

Posted by bekee at 3:33 PM | permalink | licks (0)

i finally got the wheel assembled last night. i got stumped at the flyer and bobbin step. there's some weird knobbies on the flyer holder thingy that have fishing line tied to them.. which i can only assume is for some sort of tension? i don't know. i need better instructions. the ones that the auction lady sent me are from 1900 and they're for a slightly different (and older) model.
i'll post pics of my trials and errors. as long as they're pg-13.

Posted by bekee at 8:27 AM | permalink | licks (1)

i just bought a spinning wheel on ebay from new zealand. i'm nervous. and i hope it's as awesome as i think it will be.

Posted by bekee at 9:03 PM | permalink | licks (0)

one dog sweater down, one to go.

Posted by bekee at 5:32 PM | permalink | licks (1)

spinning wheels are so expensive! i've been looking at spindles online, but it's all super confusing cuz i don't know what i'm looking at. they might as well be dreidles. i need a starter kit.

Posted by bekee at 1:50 PM | permalink | licks (0)

i really do knit, i do! i finally got around to using the plunger in the bucket in the tub. it worked a lot faster than i thought it would (about 10 minutes of plunging), and it was way less water wasted. good thing i have a hair trap in the tub, though. there was a lot of extra hair that got fulled out. so, i bring you:

Posted by bekee at 8:37 AM | permalink | licks (0)

i am actually knitting. i took a break last weekend and wasted my time playing the sims 2 (i wish they could knit!). but i'm working on a pair of bittens for suzanne, and need to get a plunger so i can felt judy's slippers in a bucket in the tub. i hope it works, cuz i don't like wasting so much water in the huge washing machine downstairs. the last time i felted in there, it took two run-throughs (and needed one more), so i finished it off in the sink up here, but it's hard to do by hand.
i was talking with a friend last night about zyban. she hasn't smoked in over a month. i think i might try it. we're not smoking in the house after tomorrow (superbowl and all), so it seems like a good time to bite the bullet. maybe it'll get me to use the treadmill downstairs more often.

Posted by bekee at 10:09 AM | permalink | licks (0)

apparently, my bittens are a steal at $15 a pop. this place is asking $80, and it isn't even a tapered thumb! omg.

Posted by bekee at 6:27 PM | permalink | licks (0)

order more yarn online yesterday. my lys is out of almost every color of lamb's pride brown sheep worsted and everyone seems to want at least a little bit of black on their bittens. i'm also checking out sauder for a dresser. i'm still using a stupid three-drawer plastic dresser that belongs in a dorm room.

Posted by bekee at 10:31 AM | permalink | licks (0)

i finished three pairs of bittens in the last couple days.. two are here. the missing pair is black, so i thought it would be self-explanitory.


i also made this for someone to keep all his ipod headphones in:

Posted by bekee at 9:27 AM | permalink | licks (2)

these are my first for a guy. i hope he likes them.

Posted by bekee at 5:13 PM | permalink | licks (0)

these are the bittens for kelly. she wears them at work cuz it's freezing after lunch. this is the correct usage. :)

i also finished kathy's hat yesterday. it took less than 2 hours.

i finished judy's bittens, but of course, forgot to get a pic of them.

Posted by bekee at 4:58 PM | permalink | licks (0)

just short a thumb (and weaving in the ends) for judy's pair. after that, it's a hat. i'm sure that'll take less time, but i never seem to get the size right on hats. in a week i'll still be sleeping.

Posted by bekee at 8:05 AM | permalink | licks (0)

the bittens are taking off. everyone who's anyone wants a pair. plus i have to get a scarf done for mom's boyfriend's nephew. it's sweatshop time! *goes to order more lamb's pride*

Posted by bekee at 10:29 AM | permalink | licks (0)

this is what i've been doing all weekend:

one pair takes ~6 hours, so i can get two done per day, roughly. i still have five pairs to make yet. yowza.

Posted by bekee at 2:20 PM | permalink | licks (0)

i made a mouse from stitch n bitch nation for the ferrets. i don't know if they'll use it as a plaything, or take care of it like a baby. they have some favorite balls that they keep in their secret hidy place, so it might end up there. i started on the loopy chill pillow, too. i've had a 14" pillow form for over a year, waiting to be covered with something. luckily, the pattern calls for a form that size. the loops aren't hard to make, but i'm picturing my conch piercings getting caught in them if i actually use the pillow. oh well.
we tested out the dyson as soon as kurt got it all put together. it pulled up sand and grossness from the carpet right in front of the door. i can't wait to see the reservoir after kurt does the whole apartment. yicky!

Posted by bekee at 4:55 PM | permalink | licks (0)

i taught my friend judy how to cast on and she managed about 7 rows of the knit stitch before i sent her on her way. she's making a garter st scarf for herself. we were gunna start with something smaller, like a square, but she might not have been as motivated. :)
i also got this done while she was here:

it looks like a firecracker!

Posted by bekee at 10:08 AM | permalink | licks (0)

i don't lie about knitting. these don't look fabulous, but they're the answer to my winter work problems. i already have orders for 5 pairs.

i'm also working on using up the rest of the orange by making a cabled heaband:

Posted by bekee at 9:08 PM | permalink | licks (0)

i feel like i've got the knitting bug back again. i was sure i had lost it over the summer. with no desire to knit, no inspiration for stash-busting, and the desire to be outside sure put a damper in my knitspirits. well, yesterday i ordered yarn, and got my two new books from amazon; stitch n bitch nation and last-minute knitted gifts. there are some cutie projects in both of these books. i'm excited about the instructions that debbie stoller added to the front of her book because i have a sweater that's falling to pieces and i'd like to "reproduce" it, but since it's machine made i'll have to substitute everything from yarn to needle to size to result. i'm excited to do it. maybe mid-winter, after i get back into the knitswing.

Posted by bekee at 8:57 AM | permalink | licks (0)

i made some fingerless mittens (i was too lazy to do fingerless gloves..) so i ordered about 10 skeins of lamb's pride worsted to make more for friends for the cold months ahead. pics to come when i get home!

Posted by bekee at 2:45 PM | permalink | licks (0)

well, i still have almost as much yarn as i had at the end of last winter and i don't know what to do with it. i have visions of just grabbing random balls and knitting up this weirdly color-schemed scarf. maybe i will.

Posted by bekee at 9:56 AM | permalink | licks (0)

i finished clapotis yesterday.. it isn't blocked yet, but it looks good. it's not as long as i thought it would be, but that's cuz i never swatch and didn't use the super-spendy yarn that was called for. speaking of yarn, i have a lot of it to use up, but i haven't any ideas about what to knit. that's probably because i have a couple plastic bags full of knitted items that haven't been bought or gifted, and i really don't need to add to them.

Posted by bekee at 9:13 PM | permalink | licks (0)

i skimped on the increase rows cuz it seemed like it was taking forever, and now i'm halfway through the straight rows. i don't like how the ends curl around, and am hoping that blocking will help that. but it's cotton yarn. and i've never blocked anything.

it really is a very ingenious pattern, though. i wonder how people come up with this stuff.

Posted by bekee at 4:06 PM | permalink | licks (0)

i finished the baby blanket for friends soon-to-be parents. this yarn came from an italian sweater that i got at marshalls which ended up not fitting nicely. i couldn't throw it out, so i frogged it and saved the yarn.

you can't see the squares very well in this image, but i made up the very easy pattern.
co 100 sts
row 1: *k10, p10*, rep from * to * for 10 rows
row 11: *p10, k10* rep from * to * for 10 rows
row 21: (repeat rows 1-10)
row 31: (repeat rows 11-20)

Posted by bekee at 10:12 AM | permalink | licks (0)

i'm finally knitting something! i did a little searching and figured out the kfb and pfb problem and have started the clapotis. it looks like my yarn is smaller than what the pattern calls for, but i couldn't find anything closer. and there ain't no way i'm paying $75 for yarn for a scarf.

oh, hi jennifer! i miss you too!

Posted by bekee at 3:49 PM | permalink | licks (0)

i finally ordered yarn from elann for clapotis. if their track record is as good as it has been, i'll have it in about a week. i still need to make booty #2 for a friend's bebe.

Posted by bekee at 4:14 PM | permalink | licks (0)

this is a formal and public apology to all members of the knitting bloggers webring. i just have not been at all interested in sitting still long enough to knit. i hope this doesn't last for very much longer.. cuz i do have lots of yarn to use up, and patterns to knit from. maybe when it gets colder?

Posted by bekee at 12:11 PM | permalink | licks (0)

i really want to knit this but i have no idea what pfb, and kfb. have i been out of the game too long?

Posted by bekee at 10:27 AM | permalink | licks (0)

i had an italian sweater that i got at marshall's for pretty cheap, but it wasn't very flattering on me. so it stayed in my closet for about 2 years until last weekend when i decided to frog it and make a blanket. i think it's gunna be a lapghan:

Posted by bekee at 4:33 PM | permalink | licks (0)

i finished the baby blanket. the recipient doesn't know about it, so i can post it here. it doesn't look like much, but it's super soft.

Posted by bekee at 9:54 AM | permalink | licks (0)

so i handed out a market bag last sunday to upstairs neighbor, mary. i gave it to her because she goes to the coop at least once a week; and if she's flaunting my bag, someone might want one of their very own. then i pulled out some softysoft yarn and started what i thought was going to be a shawl; but i think it's ending up as an inappropriate baby blanket. i only say inappropriate, because knitted baby gifts should be nothing other than mashine-washable on hot, dryer-dryable on warm cotton or acrylic. the yarn i'm using is fancy-schmancy. we'll see if the recipients like it.

Posted by bekee at 8:06 AM | permalink | licks (0)

i finished the fiona bag last night. the yarn i used isn't nearly as stiff as what was called for, so i'm going to have to find some sort of lining material and hand sew it in. the pattern was easy to follow except she didn't include directions for an applied i-cord (which i have never had the pleasure to do), so i looked it up online and found some great, easy to understand, directions. everything should have an applied i-cord border! they're fun.

Posted by bekee at 7:51 AM | permalink | licks (1)

i finally got my 0000 needles for a knitted beaded bracelet and yarn for a Fiona Bag (pdf) from bruxknits. i don't think i'll join the knitalong, though.

Posted by bekee at 10:36 AM | permalink | licks (0)

i didn't forget how to knit! i've had these two skeins of rowan dk for a while, and have knitted and frogged items about 100 times. it's finally behaving into this nice market bag.

Posted by bekee at 6:16 PM | permalink | licks (1)

okay, so after like 3 months, i'm actually knitting again. i've decided to use up my stash by making "market bags" for friends. some of them might turn out ugly because of all the different yarns i have, but they'll be ugly in a good way. pics when i get a few more rows done on the first one.

Posted by bekee at 12:42 PM | permalink | licks (0)

i'm going to try to use up a bunch of yarn by making french style market bags and giving them to neighborhood friends who use the co-op a lot.

Posted by bekee at 3:50 PM | permalink | licks (1)

so kurt and i got new phones on thursday. they don't make orange faceplates for it, so i knitted a new cozy.

Posted by bekee at 1:18 PM | permalink | licks (1)

a slipper from knitting pretty but i frogged it last night. i'm just not motivated to knit anything! :confused: what i need to do is try knitting with beads because i have a *bunch* of those hanging around. and, the interweb seems really slow this morning.

Posted by bekee at 9:41 AM | permalink | licks (0)

i finally finished the shawl for work.

i also tried looking for a suitable replacement yarn for the interweave knits leaf shawl, because euroflax linen at $14.95 a cone makes it almost a $100 shawl (with shipping). that's ridiculous.

Posted by bekee at 10:15 AM | permalink | licks (0)

the fridayfive lady has hung up her hat. i can understand.. it would be kind of annoying to have to come up with five questions every week for 2.5 years. i'd like to say that i'd give it a try, but i don't think i could. besides, she's not selling the domain or anything, so it's not like it matters. i am happy it's friday, nonetheless!

Posted by bekee at 11:16 AM | permalink | licks (0)

i /have/ been knitting a little. i've been trying to reduce my stash. here's a shawl i'm making for work cuz it gets chilly in the summer with all the air conditioning.

and it's friggin' snowing on may 2nd.

Posted by bekee at 8:35 AM | permalink | licks (1)

i finally got most of the bag done.. it needs seaming and two 30" i-cords, and then i need to find someone to give it to. it's kinda old-ladyish, though.

Posted by bekee at 12:07 PM | permalink | licks (0)

i'm totally ordering yarn. patternworks has koigu merino on sale in a 5 skein grab bag.

Posted by bekee at 3:35 PM | permalink | licks (0)

exciting to report. i'm working on an aran pouch from one of vogue's /on the go/ books. it's my first aran project and aside from the time it takes to do so many cables in one row, it's not that difficult. it is a little like reading a foreign language.. in progress pics will come later.

Posted by bekee at 10:58 AM | permalink | licks (0)

catalogued and ball-wound all of my yarn hoping it would inspire me to knit. i did just finish this:

it's a bathmitt for the shower. link via mom at bernat's site. a simple, free membership process is required to see the pattern. i also completed a new item and put it up in my boutique. it's the first thumbnail at the top left.

Posted by bekee at 4:31 PM | permalink | licks (1)

i've been really good about not buying so much yarn and at least attempting to use up my stash. here's what the alien illusion scarf yarn is turning into:

Posted by bekee at 6:36 AM | permalink | licks (0)

i'm officially in a knitting lull. after that huge project, i'm spent. i was able to knit an iPod cozy tuesday night, but i can't think of anything else interesting to knit. i don't need any more scarves, and gloves are almost unnecessary. i suppose i could try socks, but i seem to only like the white, cotton, storebought ones. maybe it would change my mind. maybe i'll pull out that steeringwheel cover pattern again..

Posted by bekee at 9:56 AM | permalink | licks (0)

i almost forgot. here's the end result: (img tag missing) hottie

Posted by bekee at 8:49 PM | permalink | licks (2)

i /finally/ finished all the seams for kurt's sweater. he loves it. i'll put up some pics when i get home from work.

Posted by bekee at 9:59 AM | permalink | licks (1)

i hate seams. i can't bring myself to do the side seams on the sweater. of course, i'll do them; but, i don't want to.

Posted by bekee at 12:25 PM | permalink | licks (0)

one of you is saying, "enough with all the technology! can this girl even knit anymore?" well, i'm here to tell you that kurt's sweater is on its way to being done. i just finished the 2nd sleeve and now have to work the neck and seam it all together. if this goes smoothly, it'll be my very first put-together sweater. wish me luck! (img tag missing) front! back! sleeves!

Posted by bekee at 9:36 AM | permalink | licks (0)

every week i notice that my knitting starts at 0mph on mondays and ramps up to 150mph on the following sunday. for example, last night i did one row. just one. because i was waiting for the delivered sushi to arrive and then it did. tonight i'll probably (hopefully) do at least an inch and then wednesday will start the pattern of knitmania.
though, the schedule has been severely thrown off due to more time spent with computer. as far as that goes, they responded with an explanation of what the refund will entail and asked whether or not i wanted an RMA number. i said "yes, please."

Posted by bekee at 10:39 AM | permalink | licks (0)

i got some knitting done. in light of my computer being down, i had much free time for the needles and yarn. i am about 1/4 done with the first sleeve for kurt's sweater.. hopefully i can get it and it's partner done for finishing this weekend. his bday is the 10th, so i'm cutting it kinda close. i'm not sure what i'll knit next, though! the legwarmers haven't been touched, and my 1 fingerless glove surely won't get it's better half any time soon.. i don't really need 'em now anyhow. i'm sure something will strike me.

Posted by bekee at 9:36 AM | permalink | licks (0)

gotten around to installing the new motherboard. i'm nervous, to be completely honest. i also didn't get much knitting done yesterday or monday. i've been busy. oh! we did get a new kitchen sink fixture so the stream is more than a tinkle.

Posted by bekee at 10:13 AM | permalink | licks (0)

"HO YEAH!"
When was the last time you...
1. ...went to the doctor?
kurt and i got our once-overs about a year ago.
2. ...went to the dentist?
:/ an embarassingly long time ago.
3. ...filled your gas tank? thursday the 12th
4. ...got enough sleep?
i woke up pretty well rested last sunday morning.
5. ...backed up your computer?
it's been at least 4 months, but i'll most certainly do it before i start messing with the hardware.
*hank's wife on fox's /king of the hill/.

Posted by bekee at 8:16 AM | permalink | licks (1)

this is actually the back, i was misreading the directions... but it's almost done!

Posted by bekee at 10:33 PM | permalink | licks (0)

i was a speed-knitter yesterday. i got almost all the way up to the neckline on the front. i don't have pics cuz i didn't want to stop to take any, but as soon i get home, i'll throw some up here.

Posted by bekee at 9:10 AM | permalink | licks (0)

kurt's sweater (very manly sweater from debbie stoller's stitch 'n bitch) is coming along smoothly. it's a simple k5, p1 pattern with this huge block of color going around the midsection. i'm only halfway done with the front, though.. and this is supposed to be his birthday present. so, i have less than a month to complete it.

Posted by bekee at 8:16 AM | permalink | licks (1)

kurt and i already celebrated, since he has to work tonight. though, we'll be spending the late morning together at the grocery store. i haven't gotten around to felting the fuzzy feet; i seemed to have more time when the boys were in texas. i'm still going strong on the front of kurt's sweater. it's just grey right now, so i'll wait until the color pattern gets done to post pictures. i also, probably, won't frog the fingerless mitt, but will just wait until i have more time to do #2.

Posted by bekee at 8:37 AM | permalink | licks (0)

on the fingerless mitts for yours truly. they're just taking too long cuz i'm not into them.. so i'll frog the one that's almost 98% done and start on kurt's sweater, but i have to email the pattern designer.. the first two rows confuse me.

Posted by bekee at 8:13 AM | permalink | licks (1)

dye lots affect felting. i decided to try the fuzzy feet again, since the last yarn i used said "approximately 100% wool" which meant "approximately won't felt at all". so i used the yarn that the pattern called for (lamb's pride), i had enough leftover from another project for one and a half slippers, and then had to tie on the new skein. well, after about ten minutes of hanging out in front of the kitchen sink, the "new" yarn decides it's more easily felted.. and the "old" yarn is being a jerk. i think i'll try the washing machine tonight.. i just hate wasting so much water for a pair of slippers. there's no setting to choose the size of the load, or which part of the cycle you want to start with.

Posted by bekee at 9:06 AM | permalink | licks (0)

looks lame when i get a couple days behind.. and when there are no pretty pikchurs. i got word from my consigment lady at morningcraft last night that the /washington post/ wants to feature her site in their shopping section.. and she needs more cellphone cozies from me(!). so, the selfish fingerless mitts are on hold until i can get a decent amount of the cozies done. this is a really good thing cuz i'll be using up oodles of extra yarn, with which there is too little to do much else.

Posted by bekee at 1:23 PM | permalink | licks (0)

i put the legwarmers down in order to concentrate on some gloves.. and now i think i want to make a pair of gloves for myself.. so the legwarmer recipient will have to be chilly for a little while longer. legwarmers are kinda boring to knit, anyhow.

Posted by bekee at 3:16 PM | permalink | licks (0)

today is dedicated to knitting. i hope there's some good tv on. i took about 3 days off from knitting in order to work on a friends' website which is now complete. i need to add a few more behind-the-scene type things, but you can take a look. she's a marvelous artist.

Posted by bekee at 10:01 AM | permalink | licks (1)

you needed one more entry from me today. i've decided to frog the alien illusion scarf and chalk it up to learning how to read a chart. it's halfway through the second alien head and i just can't see myself doing it 4.5 more times. i think the remnants will make some nice armwarmers, though.

Posted by bekee at 10:04 PM | permalink | licks (0)

they're not a "pair" on purpose, and i apparently can't read a pattern so the thumb gore is about 66% shorter than it should be. thankfully they still fit. :)

Posted by bekee at 5:47 PM | permalink | licks (0)

yarn was ordered for "the manly sweater" from debbie stoller's stitch n bitch book. kurt decided it would be a fine project for him to wear. :)

Posted by bekee at 9:04 AM | permalink | licks (0)

i finished the fingerless mitts last night.. pics will follow when i get home. i also started on some leg warmers for a workmate's wife. hope i can get them done before valentime's day... on the work front: my boss called in sick yesterday, too. so i didn't miss much.

Posted by bekee at 8:49 AM | permalink | licks (0)

yea, it's lame, but i'm not feeling 100% and there's a bunch of white stuff flying around outside. one of my workmates hasn't made it in to work yet, which means the roads are no fun right now... this will give me a chance to finish up my pal's fingerless mitts. the first one went super-fast. i think i'm getting to be a more proficient knitter. or else a worse judge of time.

Posted by bekee at 8:04 AM | permalink | licks (0)

wow. that was so much easier than i thought it would be. and it's extra super warm. i don't think it makes me look like grimace, though it's a little big and not entirely flattering; maybe next time.
click for a larger view.

Posted by bekee at 2:07 PM | permalink | licks (4)

Posted by bekee at 8:35 PM | permalink | licks (0)

be worried.. since i'm 3" away from finishing the sleeve and have started on the 4th of 5 skeins of yarn, but i am. i'm worried that i'll run out of yarn. i'm not 100% worried about dye lots cuz it might look cool if the top is darker or lighter, but i'll be somewhat put-out since i'll have to order more, which means waiting.

Posted by bekee at 9:43 PM | permalink | licks (1)

the sweater is going well.. i'm about halfway done with sleeve #2 and should be able to make a nice dent in it tonight. i really need to find an occupation that allows me to knit during down-times.

Posted by bekee at 9:52 AM | permalink | licks (4)

thanks, greatly, to MLK, J. i'm able to spend the day on the couch. :) hopefully i'll get both sleeves done today and can start the daunting process of joining them to the body.

Posted by bekee at 8:26 AM | permalink | licks (0)

after succesfully upgrading movable type, i figured it was time for some pictures. this first one is the start of very first sweater. after thoroughly reading the directions, i might be emailing kate (the pattern designer) for some help. i hope she won't mind. :)
this next one is a super idea that i saw on someone else's blog pictures.. i never knew what to do with the row counter. i'd lose it in the couch if it weren't attached to anything, so if you tie it on the end of the yarn tail, it's right there for you when you get done with a round! simply ingenious.
with the help of the marvelous amy last weekend, we (well, she) made this from debbie stoller's stitch 'n bitch. mom bought me this fabric over a year ago and i just figured out what to do with it. thanks mom!

Posted by bekee at 10:47 AM | permalink | licks (3)

with freezing rain turning to snow, the sidewalks around here are sure to be slippery. i'm walking up to lazy jane's this morning to meet friend from work and his wife for breakfast. hopefully i can make a dent in the sweater today. it's about 6" long now. i'm amazed at people like bonne marie who seem to pump out a sweater a day! i aspire to be like her. she's "lucky" though, she gets commute time to knit.

Posted by bekee at 8:35 AM | permalink | licks (0)

i frogged the scarf, since i don't like to have more than 3 WIPs at a time, and i didn't think i'd have enough yarn for the width with which i started. i tried writing that sentance incorrectly, but it seems funnier this way. anyhow, the yarn for my very first sweater arrived today! i'll tell ya, those denise needles sure came in handy. i manufactured a 32" circ with that little kit. i didn't even need to get mad at wiscocrafts for not having any of the right needles in stock. what a positive relief. anyhow, 138 stitches was a lot to cast on, and is a lot to purl around for an inch, but i find i like purling repetatively much better than k1, p1. it's nicer to my wrists to do just one or the other. this yarn, on the other hand, isn't as forgiving. it's bernat illusions which, though it looks real nice, it's very boucle-like and has snaggability issues.
on a down note, the mattel knitting machine buyer emailed me earlier this week and said it doesnt work (!). i'm refunding his money cuz i'm that kind of gal, but what am i going to do with a, now broken, plastic knitter? it worked when i shipped it cuz i made a 6' tube-scarf out of it. anyhow, i'm chalking it up to an annoyance and will not get too worked up over it.

Posted by bekee at 9:06 PM | permalink | licks (0)

i came across this pattern today while surfing a non-knitting message board.
i started the fingerless gloves last night. i think they'll go well. and if they do, i need to figure out a way to not have to use US#2 needles. maybe i'm a wimp, or maybe it's the tendonitis coming back, but those are too damn small.

Posted by bekee at 9:29 AM | permalink | licks (0)

so i frogged the long-ways scarf and started it over like a regular person. i also found this pattern for fingerless gloves via the KnitList and decided to bite the bullet and go for nice instead of fast for my friend. she'll appreciate it. check out marnie's other patterns, too. she's got some great design sense.

Posted by bekee at 8:18 AM | permalink | licks (0)

way-laying on the fingerless glove. it kinda fits me. i think i'll have to finish it and have the recipient try it on. i can't remember if her fingers are bigger 'round than mine or about the same. consequently, i started a longways scarf tonight. i don't think i've ever casted on more than 100 stitches (for a hat). i cast on 130 for the scarf .. hopefully it's gunna be long enough. it's pretty big yarn on pretty big needles.

Posted by bekee at 8:12 PM | permalink | licks (0)

start bringing my lunch to work. as often as possible. i hope. today we'll have a small caesar salad and veggie boullion soup. yum!
worked on a fingerless glove last night and even though my gauge was spot-on, the finger bits are pretty tight. i thought the sock yarn i got would suffice, but it's way too small and i didn't think it'd be very warm. maybe i'm wrong and should just bite the bullet and do the pair in the sock yarn.

Posted by bekee at 8:36 AM | permalink | licks (0)

everything needs a cozy:
this scarf is so cute. it looks like lemon chiffon yogurt.

Posted by bekee at 2:03 PM | permalink | licks (0)

almost finished an iPod cozy for a friend at work. he's in the reserves, so for some reason, the left-over cammo red heart junk that i have got used. i'll post pics as soon as i get the velcro sewed on. since my sweater yarn hasn't arrived yet, i'm working on a plain 'ol scarf from some supersoft lemon-sherbet yarn.

Posted by bekee at 8:55 AM | permalink | licks (0)

on using up some oldies from my stash. the following is a nice, classy scarf. not made for warmth, but for style. somethings have to have form over function.

Posted by bekee at 5:19 PM | permalink | licks (1)

my denise needles came yesterday. essentially, it's a set of different-sized points that attach to various lengths of cords, saving me time (driving around to find a store with the right size and length needle) and money (the set was ~ $50 with shipping and most needles are $6-10 a piece). i also found some beautiful yarn on eBay .. a brand and type that's usually much more expensive. even with shipping, i saved about $10. i ALSO ordered yarn for the very first sweater project.
i wasn't too impressed with the selection of colors but kurt helped me pick out a nice, dark purple that i think i can get away with wearing. now lets just hope we measured me right so it's not too small. too big, i can handle.

Posted by bekee at 8:46 AM | permalink | licks (5)

here's simon in his new sweater. it's more of a fall/spring sweater, as it doesn't go under his belly.. which he apparently doesn't like anyhow. what a cutie!

Posted by bekee at 9:01 AM | permalink | licks (2)

finished this hat last night, but not soon enough for all the snow that we got. and this scarf. omg the yarn is the softest thing i have ever felt. i got it from elann, so it's going to be out of circulation at some point. buy either or both at my bekeeboutique

Posted by bekee at 8:04 PM | permalink | licks (0)

i found a skein of idena ocean at the bottom of my bin of yarns so i decided to bust out a hat. it looks small, but it's k1 p1 rib so it will stretch nicely. i should start to be more of a hat wearer with all the hats i have in my stash of FOs.

Posted by bekee at 3:53 PM | permalink | licks (1)

i finished a fuzzy scarf and am about 80% done with a triangle shawl. both soon to be put into the boutique-complete with pictures.

Posted by bekee at 4:19 PM | permalink | licks (0)

it's done but not blocked yet (pics soon thereafter). i have decided i don't like knitting with cotton on small(ish) needles. or at least the susan bates needles that i usually use. it didn't want to slide around and made my hands hurt. my stash-busting is going well. i've spent quite a bit looking through all my knitting books, trying to piece together patterns to use up more of it. it seems i've purchased a lot of little quanitites of yarn, just to try it out, but not enough to even make a hat, so i might just have a lot of skinny scarves in my boutique soon. :) i haven't touched the knitting machine since last sunday. i told the lender that it seems too complicated and unable to do the things i want to try next. we'll see.

Posted by bekee at 9:57 AM | permalink | licks (3)

i've found great enjoyment in knitting little things. i just picked up this season's interweave knits because another blogger had posted about her flower shaped washcloths. just about the only small thing in the whole magazine. as i paged through the sweaters, i wondered how i would feel about spending so much on yarn for a sweater that would probably make me look completely frumpy. i think it'll be a little while before i can convince myself to work on something big like that.
other news: i finally ordered a set of denise interchangeable needles because i found a shawl pattern that i want to work on, and i'm tired of waiting for time to go to any handful of crafty or yarn stores to get new needles. i hope they come soon, and i hope i like them. they're spendy.

Posted by bekee at 10:47 AM | permalink | licks (1)

i'm slowly working on the alien illusion scarf. i can't think of who to give it to (or who would appreciate both the work gone into it, and the aliens) so i think that's why it's taking me so long. so i started sally melville's shape it scarf, for the puppy's owner, with the leftover yarn. (img tag missing) shapeit_01.jpg

Posted by bekee at 4:47 PM | permalink | licks (0)

i ordered these forever ago from Name Maker and they only just arrived yesterday, so i wasn't able to get them on any holiday gifts. my only disappointment with them is the thread count of the fabric. if you make a hole with a pin, it's there for good.

Posted by bekee at 10:14 AM | permalink | licks (1)

it'll look better once i can get a picture with the dog wearing it, but i think it turned out nicely; for a one-of-a-kind piece. (img tag missing) doggie.jpg

Posted by bekee at 9:25 AM | permalink | licks (0)

since i can't seem to work from a chart (re: alien illusion scarf), and i don't have any more giftknitting to do, i'm starting on a dog sweater for a friends' boston terrier. i'm designing it from scratch and to custom-fit this cute little one. i'll surely let you know how it turns out.

Posted by bekee at 10:15 AM | permalink | licks (0)

the striped stockings are all done. i attempted to steam them with an ancient norelco steamer, but ended up pouring hot water on one of them instead. so it's drying. hopefully it won't spontaneously felt. (img tag missing) socks_02.jpg

Posted by bekee at 11:52 AM | permalink | licks (0)

kurt got me a digital camera for the holiday! i've been complaining about the poor (and old) quality of my sony camera. so he got me an awesome kodak one with zoom and everything! here's a example of a knitted bit on the new camera: (img tag missing) socks.jpg

Posted by bekee at 5:43 PM | permalink | licks (1)

faithful readers, i've been lax with the pictures of knitting. these knee-high stockings are taking an awful long time because i keep not reading the shaping instructions. :) i'm onto the foot of stocking#2 and, if all goes well tonight, will have them completed.
the machine knitting is still kind of awkward. it's an old machine and therefore kinda sticky at times. i'm sure i'll be spending some time with it over the holiday.

Posted by bekee at 8:47 AM | permalink | licks (0)

well, i only lasted about 2 months on the yarn diet. but in those two months, i knitted up about 7 balls of various yarns. scarves, mostly. i've decided that over the holiday, i'm going to ball-wind what needs it and make sure i know what's in my stash.

Posted by bekee at 7:51 AM | permalink | licks (0)

workfriend came over this morning to help me set up the knitting machine. he and his wife left, and i started futzing with it. as soon as the first f-word came out, i stopped. i couldn't even get the dang thing to cooperate with casting on.

Posted by bekee at 1:41 PM | permalink | licks (0)

a friend at work is letting me borrow his toyota knitting machine. i can't even figure out how to get it safely out of the case. if anything, the size of it is going to have me clearing some space in the house.

Posted by bekee at 5:58 PM | permalink | licks (0)

i feel like i made a big hullabaloo on the knitlist about copyrights and knitting and patterns and whatnot. if you're in doubt about anything, check out the following two links: http://www.geocities.com/jbtocker/copyright/index.html http://www.girlfromauntie.com/copyright/index.asp

Posted by bekee at 4:18 PM | permalink | licks (0)

here they are, all six fuzzy wraps: (img tag missing) fuzzwraps.jpg the far left one is made from paton's cha-cha, which knitted up about 50% faster than the five other lion brand fun fur wraps.

Posted by bekee at 3:04 PM | permalink | licks (0)

i want to try replicating this hat in knit stitch. i think it's such an awesome piece.

Posted by bekee at 8:25 AM | permalink | licks (1)

i bought yarn today. but it's alright, because it will all be moved quickly through my hands and needles and back to the person who requested 6(!) eyelash scarves for various gift-giving. i'm way undercharging because i forgot how much lion brand fun fur is.. :/

Posted by bekee at 5:20 PM | permalink | licks (0)

i guess taking a mid-week day off work makes me confused. i have been thwarted by time. i consistently can't remember that it's thursday. i forgot to take pics of my work holiday ornament so now i have to remember to bring my digicam in tomorrow.
kurt and i walked to lazy jane's yesterday for lunch and the wind hurt my face and ears (i don't wear hats, they mess up my hair) so as soon as we got home, i knitted up one of those skiing headband things. i'll get a pic of that, too. it's darn cute.

Posted by bekee at 10:54 AM | permalink | licks (0)

bites the dust: (img tag missing) gift_hat.jpg a holiday gift hat for mom's boyfriend. now onto the tree ornament for work..

Posted by bekee at 12:16 PM | permalink | licks (0)

i finaly won an auction for the knitting machine by mattel. hooray!

Posted by bekee at 4:22 PM | permalink | licks (0)

done with all three keyhole scarves. i'm only gunna ramble about the yarn so it's documented somewhere so's i don't forget. :) (img tags missing) online linie: katia niebla: ggh relax (this is the best yarn ever, i think):

Posted by bekee at 9:46 PM | permalink | licks (1)

there's nothing going on at work. i just opened up a new browser window and decided to visit elann. i've only been on a yarn diet for 3 weeks. edited 10 minutes later: okay, i closed the window before going too far.

Posted by bekee at 12:35 PM | permalink | licks (0)

workin' on keyhole scarf #3. as you can see over there -> , i'm more than halfway done.. but, uhoh! the new knitty is up. now i will surely be too busy knitting to do /anything/ else. hooray!

Posted by bekee at 9:15 AM | permalink | licks (0)

two scarves done. one to go. the second one was made with katia niebla on us#13 so it took less than 3 hours. the next one is gunna kill me though, i think. pics of all three when the 3rd one is complete.

Posted by bekee at 12:43 PM | permalink | licks (1)

i've got.. to.. keep... knitting! someone kurt works with came over yesterday to pick yarn from my stash for three keyhole scarves for various giftees. so i have plenty to do. i can't say no to knitting! even if it's going to take a while. i can probably finish the first one today and get most of the second one done and then the third one will be a snap during the football game tomorrow.

Posted by bekee at 9:27 AM | permalink | licks (0)

think i'm not knitting. that is not the case. martin picked up his scarf yesterday and was very pleased with the results. (img tag missing) i'm also working on the foot length of stocking #1... it's slow going, but it's fun to make something that needs to fit, as opposed to a scarf. :) (img tag missing)

Posted by bekee at 4:29 PM | permalink | licks (1)

has just flown by. i have been so busy at work that the days seem to melt away so i can get home and knit. the knee-high stocking is going well.. i had to frog quite a bit of it back to before starting the heel flap because i was worried that i picked up the side stitches oddly. i found this link (http://www.royea.net/sockdemo1.html) on a crafty message board. maybe you will find it useful, too. :)

Posted by bekee at 11:50 AM | permalink | licks (0)

the current high-bidder (link removed cuz auction is old) though, i wished not to spend so much on some plastic junk, i'll be able to whip out long skinny scarves and sell them; which should well make up for the cost of this machine. as i was browsing the auctions last night, i came across an old-school vintage sock knitting maching. kurt was surely excited and told me to get it. i said i'd have to wait cuz it was somewhere's around $149 with no bids.

Posted by bekee at 11:16 AM | permalink | licks (2)

i woke up almost too early this morning and decided to get up before the alarm went off. i had enough time to knit a couple more rows on the "pre-heel" part of stocking number 1. i've been busy at work until just this second. it's crazy now that everyone's ordering for christmas.

Posted by bekee at 4:56 PM | permalink | licks (0)

okay, it's going way faster now. i was having a hard time with the k2, p2 rib on US#2 needles. that was frustrating. but now, the mindless stockinette stitch on US#3 (bamboo, even! my first set of bamboo dpns. not sure why i hadn't bought bamboo for all the other sizes that i have) is going a lot faster. i have about 3 more inches til turning the heel. pics will come soon.

Posted by bekee at 10:25 AM | permalink | licks (0)

i promised i'd do those striped stockings in debbie stoller's stitch n bitch book.. but they're just going to take forEVER.

Posted by bekee at 8:12 AM | permalink | licks (0)

busy knitting.. long 3x3 ribbed scarf. it's almost done, but i can't decide if it should have fringe or not. (img tag missing)

Posted by bekee at 12:55 PM | permalink | licks (0)

for a packer-fan friend: (img tag missing)

Posted by bekee at 10:25 AM | permalink | licks (0)

for sleeping in on a day off. i was up and at 'em at 7:15. even after going to bed at 11:30. oh well, more knitting time. :) oh! happy turkey day.

Posted by bekee at 7:47 AM | permalink | licks (0)

for a barbie knit hits fashion maker. you'd think since i sort of work for the big pink sister, that i could find one somewhere. but i can't. they were manufactured in 1998 and if they had any in a warehouse somewhere, i wouldn't be able to convince anyone that they needed to dig one up for me. i got outbid on four different eBay auctions.. i can't bring myself to spend more than $25 (hold shipping) on one since i don't know how much they went for originally.

Posted by bekee at 1:54 PM | permalink | licks (1)

morningcraft has launched and my scarf already sold! whoot!

Posted by bekee at 2:45 PM | permalink | licks (0)

i keep window shopping online for yarns but really, really don't need any more. i have enough yarn for the items on my to do list. just thought i'd share.

Posted by bekee at 8:07 PM | permalink | licks (0)

a co-worker's daughter has a bear that's missing its sweater. so i rose to the challenge. it's going to be a little too big, but that's better than a little too small. and, it's just a bear.
pattern found here.

Posted by bekee at 2:15 PM | permalink | licks (0)

i had to frog the secret santa gift last night because i wasn't paying attention to yardage. i want to use up all the yarn from the two balls, but not so fast! i co'd too many.

Posted by bekee at 9:56 AM | permalink | licks (0)

the legwarmer/armwarmer pair is done. the armwarmers look small, but they're k2, p2 ribbed so they're nice and stretchy.

Posted by bekee at 6:55 PM | permalink | licks (0)

i just went on elann and /didn't buy yarn/. i got a ball winder though. i'm tired of using an empty toilet paper roll for making center-pull balls; even though it's a super idea.

Posted by bekee at 12:46 PM | permalink | licks (0)

after:
booga_02.jpg
before:
booga_03.jpg
like i said, i think i need to felt it once more, just to get it to participate in standing upright. otherwise, it was such a quick and cool pattern.. i'd love to do it again if Kureyon wasn't so expensive. :)

Posted by bekee at 8:13 PM | permalink | licks (1)

the booga j bag is done, and i know it's anti-climatic to tell you without giving you a picture, but i'm at work and the bag is at home. :) it's not as "stiff" as i would like it, but i already threaded the strap into the body of the bag. i might throw it in the wash again (supervised, of course), to make the strap more secure, so it won't slide through the holes... kurt said it was the best thing i've made yet. if it weren't pink and orange, i bet he'd carry it around. :)

Posted by bekee at 11:40 AM | permalink | licks (0)

the legwarmers were completed during the game last night. i casted on for the matching armwarmer set and got about an inch into that. k2, p2 ribbing is kind of annoying on size 5. perhaps i shouldn't complain; i haven't done rib-cuffed socks yet.

Posted by bekee at 8:11 AM | permalink | licks (0)

the booga j bag has been felted and is drying. it sure turned out better than the slippers. i let it go once through the wash cycle and then took it out and stood over the sink rubbing it against itself in hott water with a little soap. it behaved favorably. it's blocking right now. before and after pics to come.

Posted by bekee at 2:44 PM | permalink | licks (1)

go on a yarn diet. i have an antique-y wooden sewing box, a 70 qt plastic storage container, a bag of 20 balls from elann and a box from somewhere else with 6 skeins in it. i think it's okay if i don't buy yarn all winter. i have discovered what the problem is though; with storing all the yarn like this; you can't see it to remind yourself that you have so much to choose from already. i know my stash isn't so big. i remember telling kurt once, not to worry, because i read on another knitter's blog that her husband had to put another room on the house to store her stash. :)

Posted by bekee at 9:08 AM | permalink | licks (1)

the bag is coming along nicely. i have about 20 more rounds to go before starting on the painstakingly long i-cord. too bad there isn't a magical way to do those faster. :) kureyon is really great to work with.

Posted by bekee at 8:35 AM | permalink | licks (0)

felting 101 under tips & tricks. this woulda helped me a week ago.

Posted by bekee at 3:24 PM | permalink | licks (1)

and damn spammers, too. it seems someone has harvested my email address and is sending mail on bekee.com's behalf. please know that i have nothing to do with it... and havn't the energy to track down those responsible because they're much smarter and faster than i.
i got a few more rows done on legwarmer#2 and got bored.. so i started the booga j bag. the kureyon stripes nicely so far.. i like the orangegreenblueyellowpink colorway of the yarn... now i hope that it felts right. i tried hand-felting the fuzzy feet and have determined that the yarn i used just isn't interested in felting.. maybe it's because the label says, "approximately 100% wool". stupid approximations. oh, as i saw browsing through the knitting bloggers ring yesterday, i saw something about a yarn diet. i also read about some unwritten "no more than 3 WIPs at a time" rule. are there 10 more rules to knitting? we should make some up and start a support group. though, let's keep any higher power out of it.

Posted by bekee at 8:17 AM | permalink | licks (0)

since mondays and tuesdays are QT time with kurt, i don't seem to get much knitting done. tonight, though, i must make some remarkable headway on legwarmer#2 so i can start my booga j bag in order to felt my fuzzy feet slippers. it's always something! :)

Posted by bekee at 9:22 AM | permalink | licks (0)

I read the Booga J Bag instructions again last night and it did mention that it might take 3-4 times through the wash to get it to felt enough... so Kurt's going to throw the slippers in with the wash today and see if they come out okay. They'll probably come out to fit a Barbie. :D Too busy at work today for much more.

Posted by bekee at 1:55 PM | permalink | licks (1)

well, the slippers hardly felted at all.. i wonder if it is the yarn or if i need to run it through the cycle more.. it seems like such a waste of water. maybe the yarn just doesn't want to be felted. maybe i could hand-felt it. luckily they fit kurt before they were washed. it makes me nervous cuz i'm starting on the booga j bag soon and if /it/ doesn't work, i'll be upset. any advice from the knitters?

Posted by bekee at 7:11 PM | permalink | licks (2)

again with the football. kurt's a patriots fan so he insisted on watching the game that didn't even start til 8 last night. we played pool after i got done with work and then had some pizza for dinner. i put fake bacon (facon) on it and it was funny. so, no knitting took place.. nor did i get a chance to try felting my slippers. poo.

Posted by bekee at 9:50 AM | permalink | licks (0)

football didn't start until 7:30.. which meant the house was loud and rambunctious until about 10:45. i've found that i'm not entirely excited about the late-night games. though, i finished my fuzzy feet around 8 and will felt them after work today. i'm pretty excited to delve into the world of felting. for some reason, last night, joe took a real interest in the knitting. he even tried a few stitches, he kinda got the hang of it. i wonder if i can create a monster out of this! :)

Posted by bekee at 8:38 AM | permalink | licks (3)

it's just black and red striped: i got bored with it, so i started a pair of fuzzy feet from knitty: i used the long-tail cast-on for both of them.. i can't really tell the difference with the result, but it's a little faster than the "regular" (the one i learned-american?) cast-on. it's also more fun to get your fingers involved in the process of casting on. i havn't done any felting before, and since i have some kureyon on the way, i thought i'd try the slippers so i have something under my belt. :)

Posted by bekee at 12:29 PM | permalink | licks (0)

i guess i started it when mom got out of surgery (oct 20) and i put it down after getting one of the panels done to work on a hat and then picked it up again on thursday. holy crap i knit fast. i wanted to knit something that would take but a minute.. after working on that poncho, but i have a request in for a matching set of legwarmers and armwarmers.. red and black striped. i'm sure i'll sneak in a smallish project in the middle of all that. four tubes aren't that much fun to knit. :)

Posted by bekee at 9:14 AM | permalink | licks (0)

mom's poncho is done. it's the largest thing i've ever made. hooray!

Posted by bekee at 6:11 PM | permalink | licks (2)

i found a dry erase board here at work, just a little one. smaller than 8.5" x 11". it's been sitting blank for almost 2 months. on tuesday of this week, i decided to make it the word-of-the-day board.
i'm thrilled at the progress i've made with mom's poncho. i finally had to put it down last night because my hands wanted to move faster than my brain. the second rectangle is roughly 18" long, so i have 12" to go and then the assembly starts.

Posted by bekee at 8:06 AM | permalink | licks (2)

i was trying to make it longer, but i just got tired of it.. plus i have to get back to mom's poncho. pardon the darkness of the image, but the hat is accurate. i need a new digicam.

Posted by bekee at 7:59 PM | permalink | licks (0)

knitted, breakfasted, knitted, pooled, taco sunday'd, knitted. good day.

Posted by bekee at 9:04 PM | permalink | licks (0)

i finished 4 beer cozies and decided not to go back to mom's poncho today. so i cast on another hat. just your average roll-brim, stockinette hat.. with stripes.

Posted by bekee at 6:31 PM | permalink | licks (0)

i'm submitting some knitted goods to morningcraft and the person coordinating the efforts has taken a liking to the beer cozy idea.

Posted by bekee at 12:46 PM | permalink | licks (0)

since i've joined the knitting bloggers webring, i ought to take more in-progress pics of my work instead of just yapping about it. since my digicam sucks at night, this is a stitch sample. it's knit in two 15"x30" pieces and then sewn together. i'm done with one of the pieces.

Posted by bekee at 7:27 PM | permalink | licks (0)

my new thursday activity, it seems, is to shop on elann for more yarns. the poncho for mom will use up a hefty chunk of my stash.. i do need to start knitting some more smaller things, because i have a habit of getting just enough for one cellphone cozy, or one small hat, or one small bag. it's a darn good thing i like to knit.

Posted by bekee at 11:15 AM | permalink | licks (2)

two new items in the boutique. they're the first two. the blue and white hat was a pain because i knitted it with 4 strands held together and the yarn wasn't very slippery.. i just started a cellphone cozy from a new book that i got, stitch 'n bitch, and then will start on the powerful wrist warmers. i don't know yet what yarn i want to use, but i sure have plenty to choose from.

Posted by bekee at 4:23 PM | permalink | licks (0)

i'm on elann.com searching for yarns. this isn't good for my stash-shrinking goal.

Posted by bekee at 12:58 PM | permalink | licks (2)

i took a sick day yesterday. strangely enough, i started getting sick. i slept til around noon and went to bed around 9. i knew it was time to get off the couch and get into bed when i couldn't even keep my hands up to knit! what a sad state. i should let everyone know that i've been slightly successful in getting my yarn stash to a smaller, more manageable size, but my bag of FO's (finished objects) is becoming large! pretty soon i'll need one rubbermaid container for yarn and another for knitted goods. so, if you want to help, and need some nice homemade gifts for family members, go to the boutique and buy something. if you live close enough to me, or see me often enough, you don't need to pay shipping. see? i'm nice.

Posted by bekee at 1:38 PM | permalink | licks (0)

was pretty productive. as i'm sure you can imagine, i knitted like a fiend. didn't get much else done, though. the ferrets got to play with charlotte* on saturday night as we were getting our butts kicked during a friendly game of euchre. charlotte's mom is just too good! *the neighborhood corgy.

Posted by bekee at 10:30 AM | permalink | licks (0)

(img tag removed) soopercute.

Posted by bekee at 4:42 PM | permalink | licks (1)

it's almost too cold to knit! i went around the house and closed all the storm windows and joe helped me take the air conditioner out. sam is spending the afternoon up here cuz he keeps barking at nothing downstairs. i'm working on making my yarn stash smaller.. i started a scarf for a friend and finished the jester hat yesterday. it's dang cute.

Posted by bekee at 12:30 PM | permalink | licks (0)

so busy at work, i forgot to do the fridayfive! good thing, too, because it's lame. for me anyhow. i got my dreamed-about-hat yarn today and still havn't opened the box. hold on... damn. i can't load the pics because my usb is freaking out. nevermind.

Posted by bekee at 11:40 AM | permalink | licks (0)

i had a weird-o dream last night that i was yarn shopping and found a hat that i just have to make (in real life). the shop owner called it her "willie nelson hat". the only thing that made it vaguely willie nelson-ish was the two long straps on the side that look like his braids. the rest of the hat was striped. i now need to order yarn to make it.

Posted by bekee at 11:12 AM | permalink | licks (1)

but, the new knitty is up. mostly coats and sweaters, things that take me too long; being a child of the instant gratification age.. but i might try that scarf. it looks fancy.
i'm in excellent spirits today knowing that i don't have to come into work tomorrow. kurt and i have planned a delicious meal at the blue marlin this evening. their oysters rockefeller are scrumptious.

Posted by bekee at 9:25 AM | permalink | licks (1)

ever since i made that statement on monday, outloud, to several people, my attitude has gotten 100% better. the power of persuasion is my friend. kurt and i had an awesome evening in last night. we rented /about schmidt/ and /punch drunk love/. i've been a fan of jack for years and years, and his character (mr. schmidt) was excellent. punch drunk was pretty good, too. it wasn't at all what i expected; mostly because i don't pay attention to previews or commercials and didn't know what to expect. i know i said i wouldn't get any more yarn until i had knitted away my stash, but i think i'm gunna end up going to get yarn at lunch. i think.

Posted by bekee at 9:38 AM | permalink | licks (3)

sold a hat, got orders for christmas gifts (speaking of which... i have to start on that child-sized jester hat for co-worker's neice), got busy days at work which make them go fastfast.

Posted by bekee at 12:20 PM | permalink | licks (0)

*too busy knitting to blog*

Posted by bekee at 9:57 PM | permalink | licks (0)

check out the boutique for all the new knitted items for sale. you'll see some of the old ones in there too. feel free to support my habit. :)

Posted by bekee at 2:18 PM | permalink | licks (5)

since the level 2 technicians aren't calling me back, i assume that i won't have a digital connection to the outside world while i'm celebrating labor day. so this is all you get until next tuesday. it'll give me a chance to finish knitting the yoga mat bag. the recipient's yoga class starts on the 5th so i need to get bookin'; i'm only halfway done with it.

Posted by bekee at 9:30 AM | permalink | licks (0)

a scarf in less than 3 total hours. pic to come.

Posted by bekee at 10:23 AM | permalink | licks (3)

i doubt anyone's going to ever buy any of it, but i've added a couple more pieces to my boutique. just finished the mohair scarf last night. i was attempting to "use up" a lot of yarn before moving, but i just ended up going to prairie junction in sun prairie to get more! they were really nice there, as opposed to the lady at lakeside fibers. lakeside has more and better yarn, but they were flat out snotty. i was a new knitter then, i wonder if they could tell. i'll probably give 'em another chance soon.

Posted by bekee at 9:23 AM | permalink | licks (0)

I finally got around to taking pictures and adding new stuff to the bekeeboutique. Don't be afraid to request colors, as well, if you don't like my choices. :)

Posted by bekee at 11:23 AM | permalink | licks (0)

i have tendonitis. it's like carpal tunnel syndrome, only it's the irritation of the tendons that control the pinky, ring finger, and half of the middle finger. it started when i worked at relay (for the deaf, hard of hearing, and speech impaired). i was typing 120 wpm 30 hours a week. it hurt to read in bed. it hurt to carry groceries. it hurt to do the dishes. it hurt to make hemp necklaces. the dr's said i had to stop doing all of that. O_o the only thing that fixed it was taking a 6 mo. sabbatical from that job (5 yrs ago). cuz wanna know why? it's caused by stress. my wrist woke me up this morning. [/whine] it's offical, though; we get to start moving in as early as august 8th.

Posted by bekee at 6:10 AM | permalink | licks (0)

where does the time go? i had a pretty fun weekend. saturday night had a full-moon-feel to it, but i know that's not scheduled until june 14th. i got the produce bag done and gave it to mom since they go to the farmer's market more often than i do. i'm working on a hat for one of the mickey's softballers, and next up is a tam for the coach. i'm counting down the days til the 22nd. kurt and i are going to iowa to stay 2 nights at the miss marquette riverboat and casino. you see, we went to vegas for our honeymoon in september and he's been itching to play blackjack ever since. maybe this'll quiet him down. :)

Posted by bekee at 9:06 AM | permalink | licks (0)

my arms and wrists hurt. i just got done power-cleaning the bathroom. i don't remember if i've ever cleaned the bathroom here (we moved in aug. 15, 2001). i suppose that's a testament to how much i don't like this place. i'm excited that the tub is white again, though. :)

Posted by bekee at 6:06 PM | permalink | licks (0)

there's a gal at work that is somehow convinced that all my talk about knitting is just for show (she's actually just giving me grief), so i thought i'd digitally capture the water bottle holder that got such rave reviews at the last softball game. here it is: (image code missing)

Posted by bekee at 6:29 PM | permalink | licks (0)

we drove to visit kurt's mom yesterday.. apparently she's tired of knitting and gave me a ton of yarn and almost all of her knitting needles. i have enough yarn for 2 afghans, but i think i might try my hand at a cardigan for work. it gets chilly in the summer what with all the air conditioning.

Posted by bekee at 7:18 AM | permalink | licks (2)

think of something fancy to say for my 200th entry.. except no one knows it's my 200th entry but me. currently knitting: a water bottle holder.

Posted by bekee at 2:20 PM | permalink | licks (0)

Okay, so I finally found a pattern for knitted oreos.. and lemon merengue tarts, spaghetti and meatballs, scrambled eggs and toast, and a long-john doughnut! Soon A. will have her soft sculpture. :)

Posted by bekee at 7:07 AM | permalink | licks (4)

Pictures are on their way. I finished Bob's hat on... Wednesday, I think. I started Kurthat#2 on Friday before laundry and finished it by 4 on Saturday. I started Joehat#2 on Sunday as the race began and I finished it 3.25 hours later as the race ended. *crazy knitter*

Posted by bekee at 2:35 PM | permalink | licks (0)

is the fact that I can knit as soon as I get home. Yesterday, the entire company received their annual merit increases and bonus for the previous year. I was not among the recipients,, since, you know, I was an internal freelancer who worked her ass off last year for the redesign. I may be just complaining here, but hell; it's my blog, so I can. We did get our very generous Federal Tax Return yesterday, though. I'm pleased as punch about that.

Posted by bekee at 8:06 AM | permalink | licks (0)

Oh boy. I've gone officially knitnuts. You may think this already happened a month or two ago, but at that point, I did not have two orders of yarn on the way, a new yarn book, and an almost complete five hat belt. Actually, I'm not as knitnuts as some people, but at least I have something to aspire to.

Posted by bekee at 10:48 AM | permalink | licks (0)

but yesterday was spent, in it's entirety, knitting. I have very little to comment on because the best thing for me while knitting is Comedy Central's reruns of SNL and mediocre stand-up comedy. Speaking of stand-up. Jerry Seinfeld is coming to Madtown on my birthday and I really wanted to go. The tickets went on sale on Saturday morning, and when I went to purchase them yesterday evening and all but the $75 9p show was sold out. I'm not interested in spending $75 on something that doesn't either plug in or light up and give me entertainment for longer than an hour.

Posted by bekee at 9:38 AM | permalink | licks (0)

Thank goodness that's over. Just kidding. I am, however, pretty happy about the weekend coming up. Kurt's bday is this Monday and I've taken the day off (paid!!!) to spend with him. We're going out for dinner at the Tornado Club (as we did for Valentine's Weekend) and I can't wait because it was absolutely scrumptious. The extra weekend day also lends itself to more knitting! I finished the bulk of Joe's hat last night and just need to get my ass to the craft store to get some white yarn for the embroidery. You know photos will arrive shortly.

Posted by bekee at 8:20 AM | permalink | licks (0)

Before I get too far ahead of myself and have to have a photoshoot: (image tag missing)

Posted by bekee at 8:08 PM | permalink | licks (3)

It seems like everyone is just kinda "blah" lately. I'm attributing it to the mid-febblues. I finally brought lunch today. After spending $4.25 on a sourdough baguette with hummus and roasted red peppers yesterday, I've decided that my boycott needs more stringent sticking-to. I'm such a snot. I'm going to a baby shower this weekend and want to think of something cute and nice to give to the mom-to-be. Something not child related.. more like something for her. Lucky for me, she just took up knitting. :)

Posted by bekee at 8:55 AM | permalink | licks (0)

It's way too big for my head. I don't wear hats anyhow.. I may just mail it to the website that the pattern came from; Headhuggers.

Posted by bekee at 11:07 AM | permalink | licks (0)

can't... use... the... mouse. I knitted for ~8 hours yesterday, finishing Kurt's beanie, only to discover that I have to add another inch to the rim. This is not a particularly difficult endeavor, but requires skills that I hadn't planned on learning until next winter when I knit my first sweater. It simply involves a ring of fabric sewn to the bottom rim of the existing hat as one would sew an arm sleeve to a sweater shell. Enough shop talk. I'll be very busy at work tomorrow (read: lots of mousing), so I shouldn't be on the computer so much at home for fear that my wrists will turn into mush.

Posted by bekee at 8:00 AM | permalink | licks (0)

It's finally done*! (code for image removed by something) *note to recipient: the color is not
accurately captured by my crappy digicam.

Posted by bekee at 8:32 AM | permalink | licks (0)

There's only so much yarn a person needs before it looks like they just collect yarn. I'm referring to this (links to ebay auctions removed because they no longer exist). But don't they look superfun? I love knitting.

Posted by bekee at 8:29 AM | permalink | licks (0)

This weekend was kinda uneventful... I was TurboFun Bekee on Friday night, but that had a severe, adverse affect to my ability to be functional on Saturday. I slept in til 1 and missed the peace rally downtown. I'm a turd for that. Sunday was spent at breakfast (per usual) with friends and family, grocery shopping, picking up some more yarn and needles, and watching the boys play shoot 'em up games while I added another 2 feet to the scarf. I use bamboo needles, and the only thing I don't like about them compared to the classic metal knitting needles, is that they don't make the clicky noise to indicate to passerbys that you're knitting you arse off. Anyhow, with the scarf almost finished, Kurt has put in a request for a beanie hat. I have a feeling the hat is a little too advanced for me at this stage, so I might do that and another scarf at the same time. Thanks, I'll be here all week.

Posted by bekee at 9:26 AM | permalink | licks (0)

This-or-that Tuesday is from last week because the blog hasn't been updated to reflect today.
1. Super Bowl or World Series?
Super Bowl.
2. Winter or summer?
Summer.
3. Look up numbers in the phone book, or call directory assistance?
Neither. Use anywho.
4. Mashed potatoes or French fries?
Neither. Useless carbs.
5. Hand-code your website, or use an editor (such as Front Page)?
Hand code. duH!
6. Freeway or winding country road?
Freeway.
7. Star Wars or Star Trek?
Star Trek.
8. Disney or Warner Brothers cartoons?
Warner Brothers. I think Bugs could kick Mickey's ass.
9. When it feels chilly in the house: crank up the heat or put on a sweater?
A sweater, scarf and gloves; especially if I'm at work.
10. CBS or PBS?
PBS

Posted by bekee at 8:35 AM | permalink | licks (4)

Our first Stitch and Bitch went splendidly. Fash learned, with lightning speed, that knitting is fun! jennifer and I also delved into the purl stitch. This, combined with the knit stitch makes up the entirety of our knitted world. I think I can say with confidence that we're all thrilled. Hats anyone heard of headhuggers? As Fash put it, the cause is a little strange right now, but in a few months, we'll be donating tons, I'm sure.

Posted by bekee at 8:32 AM | permalink | licks (0)

Knitting is fun! I'd write a book about it, but that title is already taken. So I admit I didn't think I could do it. Mom stuck with crocheting for the same reason. It's an extremely zen process and if I can keep that in my head, I can knit anything! Homework assignment: Find out when and why someone was sitting on their rock and decided to grab the two sticks on the ground and weave a string around them in order to make a blanket. Cuz I'm sure they didn't start with washcloths.

Posted by bekee at 9:40 AM | permalink | licks (0)